Environment: Oil Shokku for Japan

To keep its economy healthy, Japan must receive one fully loaded
supertanker every hour of every day. It must also get oil from the
Middle East via the shortest route and then provide vast storage
facilities for the vital fuelall without undue environmental risk.
Until recently, the Japanese were confident that they could transport
and store their oil safely and efficiently. Now two serious oil spills
have caused shokku (shock) and raised grave doubts on both counts.

One spill occurred last week when the 237,698-ton supertanker Showa Maru
ran aground at the eastern entrance to the Malacca Strait between
Singapore and Malaysia...